PATRIOTS NOTEBOOK: A busy offseason

Tuesday

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Patriots have been busy this offseason. They’ve worked the trade block just as much as the free-agent market over the last three weeks.

The team has swung deals for Jason McCourty, Danny Shelton and Cordarrelle Patterson. They’ve added free agents Adrian Clayborn, Jeremy Hill and Matt Tobin. On Tuesday, coach Bill Belichick talked about the new additions for the first time this offseason.

“All the guys that we got, obviously, we’re happy to have. Glad that it worked out with all of them,” Belichick said. “We’ll see how it goes. We’re going to put them into the program and give them the opportunity to compete like everybody else. We’ll see how it works.”

When it came to trades, the Patriots acquisition of McCourty certainly stuck out. The twin brother of Devin McCourty gives the Patriots two sets of twins on their 90-man roster along with Jacoby and Cody Hollister.

“I’ll be fooled more than anybody. I’ve been hit on that before,” said Belichick. “Two sets of twins, I think we’re elite on that in the league. We lead the league in that.”

Jason McCourty was the Patriots' second trade with Cleveland this offseason. They started things off by dealing for Shelton, a stout defensive tackle. The Patriots had their eyes on him during the 2015 NFL Draft even though they knew he wouldn’t fall to No. 32. Shelton was selected 12th overall, but the Patriots did enough pre-draft work on him to continually covet the run stopper.

“Yeah, he wasn’t obviously in our range at that point, but we still did quite a bit of background on him all the way back to high school. It’s all pretty positive,” Belichick said.

Their third trade of the offseason brought in a versatile offensive weapon in Patterson. He has elite speed, which has been seen in the kickoff return game where he’s been selected to two Pro Bowls and three All-Pro teams.

Although he has limited experience as a punt returner, it seems like the Patriots will try out Patterson in that role.

“He’s been a productive player. Kind of a situational player in our offense and special teams,” Belichick said. “He’s returned kicks primarily. We’ll see how it goes with punts. Played receiver, running back, slot back. We’ll see.”

Of their three free agents, Clayborn was the biggest signing. The defensive end finished last season with a career-high 9.5 sacks. Although he’s predominately played on the right side, it sounds like the Patriots will try the veteran at multiple spots in their defensive line.

Coaching shuffle: There will be some changes with the coaching staff this season. What those will be, you’re going to have wait.

The Patriots will have to replace their defensive coordinator, Matt Patricia, now the head coach of the Detroit Lions.

Former Arkansas coach Bret Bielema has been working with the Patriots at various college Pro Days around the nation.

When asked about Bielema’s role, Belichick said, “We’ll have a formal and final staff announcement later in the spring.”

If he joins the Patriots in a coaching capacity, Bielema has experience as both a defensive coordinator and linebacker coach. The defensive coordinator spot, however, appears to be Brian Flores', although it’s been reported that he’ll call the defensive plays but without the official title. (That’s exactly how the Patriots brought Patricia along.)

Flores was a hot name last year. He interviewed with the Arizona Cardinals for their head coaching position.

“He’s done a lot of different things for us and done them all well,” Belichick said of Flores. “Has gained a lot of experience, he’s a quality person, a quality coach with a lot of experience.”

In the event Flores does take on a bigger role, the Patriots could look to add a linebacker coach. That could be filled internally or with an outside hire. Of course, with all the work that Patricia did in the organization, Belichick noted that multiple coaches will have to pick up the pieces in 2018.

“I think everybody on the defensive staff will take on additional responsibilities,” Belichick said. “Haven’t really added anybody to the defensive staff. Not saying we won’t or will. I’d say everybody’s responsibilities are going to. … Matt did a lot for us, obviously. He did a great job, but those will be shared by multiple people on the defensive staff.”

Plaudits from Belichick: The offseason hasn’t been kind to the Patriots when it comes to retaining their veteran free agents. In the first few days of free agency, the team lost Malcolm Butler, Nate Solder, Dion Lewis and Danny Amendola.

Losing your top four free agents isn’t ideal, but Belichick didn’t fret on Tuesday. Instead, the Patriots coach was happy for his former players.

“Malcolm, Dion, Nate, Danny, all of them. Those people worked hard,” Belichick said. “They competed well. They performed well. They signed contracts that were better than what we were able to give them. They all did a great job for us. We wouldn't have had success we had without the contributions of those, and many other players.”

The two surprises were Solder and Amendola. It seemed certain the Patriots would lose Butler and Lewis, but there was hope for their left tackle and slot receiver. Instead, Solder received the most money out of any tackle in the history of the NFL with his deal with the Giants. Amendola was given a huge pay raise (two years, $12 million) with the Miami Dolphins.

“Loved Danny. Did a great job for us,” Belichick said. “Great competitor. Played a lot of different roles. Tremendous person. Again, wish him well in the opportunity he has other than the times we play him. Love everything that Danny brought to the team in the five years that he was here. Same as Nate.

“We lost several players in free agency. That’s the NFL. Every team goes through that. Nate did a great job for us. He’s got a great opportunity in New York. We wish him well.”

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